TV Ratings Fox News Channel Extends Domination of Cable News

Since Election Day, FOX News Channel (FNC) has placed the top 1,013 cable news telecasts in television. Notably, MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show doesn’t appear on the list until the 1,104th place, with its March 24th episode that saw 2,431,000 viewers.

FNC’s coverage of the inauguration of Donald Trump in the 12 PM/ET hour of January 20th continues to be the most-watched show since the presidential election with 11.7 million viewers. Post-election, FNC’s total day cable news share is 65% and primetime share is 66%, while CNN draws just 14% of cable news viewers in total day and 12% in primetime and MSNBC sees only 20% in total day and 22% in primetime. 

FNC has averaged 1.8 million viewers and 224,000 in the 25-54 demo across total day and 2.7 million viewers and 335,000 in the 25-54 demo during primetime since Election Day. Meanwhile, CNN is averaging under 500,000 viewers across primetime and total day and MSNBC is lagging behind to 918,000 viewers in primetime and 554,000 viewers in total day in this time period.

For the week of April 28 – May 4 in total day (6 AM-6 AM/ET), FNC posted 1.6 million viewers and 180,000 in the 25-54 demo. In primetime (8 PM-11 PM/ET), FNC averaged 2.5 million viewers and 256,000 in the 25-54 demo. In weekday primetime, FNC (2.9 million viewers) outpaced NBC (2.5 million viewers). 

• CNN posted its worst week of the year with total day viewers (365,000 viewers) and with primetime A25-54 (81,000 viewers). 
• CBS Evening News also saw its lowest-rated week ever with just 3.6 million viewers and 482,000 in the 25-54 demo.

For the week, The Five averaged 3.7 million viewers and 366,000 in the 25-54 demo, leading cable news. At 6 PM/ET, Special Report with Bret Baier drew 2.8 million viewers and 311,000 in the 25-54 demo. The Ingraham Angle saw 2.7 million viewers and 323,000 in the 25-54 demo at 7 PM/ET. At 8 PM/ET, Jesse Watters Primetime delivered 3.3 million viewers and 364,000 in the 25-54 demo. At 9 PM/ET, Hannity posted 2.6 million viewers and 280,000 with A25-54. At 11 PM/ET, FOX News @ Night secured 1.5 million viewers and 180,000 in the 25-54 demo.

At 10 PM/ET, FNC’s late-night offering Gutfeld! secured 2.8 million viewers and 298,000 with A25-54. Gutfeld! once again topped the broadcast competition including CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (1,819,000 viewers; 272,000 A25-54), ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! (1,454,000 viewers; 231,000 A25-54) and NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon 1,069,000 viewers; 267,000 A25-54). 

FNC continued to see its daytime programs outpace the broadcast competition. The Will Cain Show (weekdays, 4 PM/ET; 2,012,000 viewers), Outnumbered (weekdays, 12 PM/ET; 1,968,000 viewers), America’s Newsroom (weekdays, 9-11 AM/ET; 1,875,000 viewers), Harris Faulkner’s The Faulkner Focus (weekdays, 11 AM/ET; 1,819,000 viewers), The Story with Martha MacCallum (weekdays, 3 PM/ET; 1,792,000 viewers) and America Reports (weekdays, 1-3 PM/ET; 1,755,000 viewers) all led NBC’s Today Third Hour (1,633,000 viewers) and ABC’s GMA3 (1,261,000 viewers).

On Saturday:  My View with Lara Trump (Saturday, 9 PM/ET), which featured an interview with Elon Musk, was the most-watched show of the day with 1.6 million viewers. FOX & Friends Weekend (weekends, 6-10 AM/ET) followed with 1.5 million viewers.  Life, Liberty & Levin commanded 1.4 million viewers at 8 PM/ET and FOX News Saturday Night with Jimmy Failla nabbed 1.3 million viewers at 10 PM/ET.

On Sunday: Maria Bartiromo’s Sunday Morning Futures (Sunday, 10 AM/ET) was the top show of the day with 1.6 million viewers. Sunday Night in America with Trey Gowdy (Sunday, 9 PM/ET) was the number one show in primetime with 1.5 million. From 6-8 PM/ET, The Big Weekend Show commanded 1.3 million viewers and 119,000 in the 25-54 demo, while One Nation with Brian Kilmeade posted 1.4 million viewers at 10 PM/ET. FOX & Friends Weekend was number one in the 25-54 demo with 148,000 viewers.

Source: Nielsen. Live+SD. Week of 4-28-25 ratings data. Average audience for cable news networks Monday-Sunday based on Total Day and Prime (6a-6a, 8P-11P), P2+, P25-54. Cable News/Broadcast Program averages exclude repeats and include the corresponding program name.

📺BROADCAST EVENING NEWS

“World News Tonight with David Muir” stood as America’s most-watched weekday program in Total Viewers (7.013 million) on all of broadcast and cable and ranked as the No. 1 newscast across the board in Total Viewers (7.013 million), Adults 25-54 (973,000) and Adults 18-49 (679,000) during the week of April 28, 2025, based on Live+Same Day Data from Nielsen Media Research.“World News Tonight” ranked as the No. 1 telecast of the day on Monday (6.797 million), Tuesday (7.070 million), Wednesday (7.137 million), Thursday (7.263) and Friday (6.581 million).

• “World News Tonight” outperformed “NBC Nightly News” (5.880 million, 870,000 and 566,000, respectively) by 1.133 million Total Viewers, by 103,000 Adults 25-54 and by 113,000 Adults 18-49.
• “World News Tonight” (7.013 million, 973,000 and 679,000, respectively) beat “CBS Evening News” (3.637 million, 482,000 and 360,000, respectively) by 3.376 million Total Viewers, by 491,000 Adults 25-54 and by 319,000 Adults 18-49.
• For the 8th straight week, “World News Tonight” increased its year-to-year margins over “CBS Evening News” in Total Viewers (+13% – 3.376 million vs. 2.987 million), Adults 25-54 (+29% – 491,000 vs. 382,000) and Adults 18-49 (+35% – 319,000 vs. 237,000).

📺BROADCAST MORNING NEWS

Morning News Shows See Mixed Results:   The week of April 28, 2025, brought a blend of encouraging and challenging outcomes for the three major morning news programs—ABC’s Good Morning America (GMA), NBC’s Today, and CBS Mornings—according to live-plus-same-day Nielsen data reported by TVNewser. While all three shows held steady or grew in total viewership, each experienced declines in the critical Adults 25-54 demographic, a key metric for advertisers.

• Positive News: None of the morning shows saw week-to-week drops in total viewers, signaling resilience in their broad audience appeal. GMA maintained its position as the most-watched morning program for the ninth consecutive week, continuing its stronghold in overall viewership.
• Concerning Trends: All three programs faced week-to-week declines in the A25-54 demo, reflecting challenges in retaining younger viewers. Despite this, Today extended its dominance in the A25-54 demographic for an impressive 90th straight week, underscoring its appeal to advertisers.

Program-by-Program Breakdown

Good Morning America (ABC):

Viewership: Averaged 2.686 million total viewers and 442,000 A25-54 viewers.
Week-to-Week: Gained +1% in total viewers, but slipped -5% in the A25-54 demo.
Year-to-Year: Compared to the same week in 2024 (week of April 29), GMA was down -4% in total viewers and -10% in the demo.
Context: GMA’s consistency in total viewership reinforces its status as a morning staple, but the demo decline suggests challenges in engaging younger audiences. High-profile segments, such as exclusive celebrity interviews or event coverage (e.g., the Met Gala on May 5, 2025), likely helped stabilize overall numbers.

Today (NBC):

Viewership: Drew 2.572 million total viewers and 598,000 A25-54 viewers.
Week-to-Week: Remained flat in total viewers and dipped -2% in the A25-54 demo.
Year-to-Year: Declined -7% in total viewers and -11% in the A25-54 demo compared to 2024.
Context: Today’s unrivaled A25-54 streak highlights its strength among advertiser-preferred viewers, driven by anchors like Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb and segments like the Today Plaza events. The flat total viewership week-to-week suggests stability, but year-over-year losses indicate broader industry trends like cord-cutting or streaming competition.

CBS Mornings (CBS):

Viewership: Attracted 1.924 million total viewers and 302,000 A25-54 viewers.
Week-to-Week: Increased +1% in total viewers but fell -4% in the A25-54 demo.
Year-to-Year: Saw significant drops of -11% in total viewers and -29% in the A25-54 demo compared to 2024.
Context: CBS Mornings, anchored by Gayle King, Tony Dokoupil, and Nate Burleson, continues to trail its competitors but showed modest total viewership growth week-to-week. The steep year-over-year demo decline (-29%) is a red flag, potentially reflecting challenges in refreshing content or competing with digital platforms.

📺TV SHOWS RANKER

Ranking is based on ratings data as of Thursday, May 1, 2025. The audience figures are derived from the latest Nielsen daily, weekly, or monthly P2+ program audience averages, whichever is the most recently available within the past seven-day window. Please note that some shows may not appear in the ranking probably because there are no ratings data for them within the stipulated period.